Mistake
by zutara4eva21
Summary: Katara's wrong decision get's her in trouble with the banished prince of the fire nation. Now who is going to save her?
1. Chapter 1

HEY, ZUTARA4EVA21 HERE AND ITS BEEN AGES SINCE I LAST UPDATED. SUMMER IS HERE WHAT CAN I SAY? NOPE NOTHING! ANYWAYS I STARTED A NEW STORY FOR ZUKOXKATARA AND HOPE YOU SHALL ALL ENJOY~ REVIEW!

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><p>The sky was dark above her head. The only thing to provide any light for Katara was from the moon and stars. She kneeled behind a medium size bush that was big enough to keep the fire nation from seeing her. Her blue eyes watched the big metal ship that rested in the slow current of the oceans as it slowly swayed back and forth. Her eyes locked onto the person that caused her to be standing here right now shouting orders out to the guards in armor. The guy was the very opposite of her in element and beliefs. He was the one who took her brother and friend. The one that never missed a chance to catch the avatar.<p>

"Zuko" she whispered his name in cold tone that would have bought chills to anyone as her eyes narrowed. If it was possible they would have burned two holes on the back of his neck. His black shaggy locks blew freely in the light breeze as the guards scurried to there jobs. _'Figure he's even a hot head to his mates' _she thought as she silently moved away from the bush and to a tree that was bit closer to the ship.

Katara could see the platform that lead onto the deck a few steps away from where she was now hiding. The voice she heard that was coming from the banished prince let her know he was still up there and she had to wait a bit longer till she could board the ship.

The bag she carried over her shoulders shifted as she turned so instead of her back against the bark of the tree her chest was. She shrugged her right shoulder causing the sliding strap to fall once again in place on her shoulder as the sound of water from her water skin banged against the walls that kept it from falling out.

Impatiently she waited for the deck to clear out so she could make her move. Each second that went by caused her to believe she would be waiting here for days, but when in reality it was a few minutes till everyone cleared it. Katara didn't wait any longer as she pushed herself away from the tree and hurried to the platform. In her rush she snapped open the cap to her water skin readying herself for anyone who would get in her way. Once boarded on the ship she paused to two doorways. One that went down and the other straight. Her mind remembered Zuko going down to the bottom of the ship so she choose to stay on the first floor as she rushed inside.

Her luck ran out. Four guards who were positioned to watch the area spotted her as they ran right after her. She wasn't afraid. She bended a stream of water out of the holder and created a whip. With a blink of an eye the guards where knocked out as she continued ahead. _'They hardly put up a fight' _she thought as she laughed silently in her mind.

Room after room she searched through for Sokka and Aang and each time it was either empty or was occupied by someone that she had to defend off. Now she was near the end of her search for the top part of the ship as she tiredly leaned against a wall. Sweat dripped down her face as she wiped it away with the back of her hand. Her eyes shot to the left to lay view on the last door she needed to search. Deep inside she had doubt they were in that room, but she wasn't going to leave it unchecked. Katara let a sigh escape her lips before she pushed herself away from the wall.

'_Please be in there' _she pleaded in her mind as her hand pushed open the metal door. Slowly it swung open. Slowly her eyes scanned the area and to her disappointment, _'Nothing!' _she yelled silently. The room was practically empty except for the commonly seen fire nation banner and another row of stairs that lead down to the bottom of the ship.

"Ugh!" she groaned in annoyance and exhaustion, but she wasn't going to give up. Not till she got her friends back. A sudden shake from the ship caused her to stumble over as she fell onto her knees. Her teeth clenched in frustration and her hands balled into a fist before she pushed herself back up to her feet. _'Damn it the ship is departing' _without any other rooms to search on the top floor she headed towards the stairs.

Taking two at a time she reached the bottom in a record of time. Like she has expected they weren't down here either. Her eyes widen when she heard the sound of a door knob turning. They shot onto the metal rectangle that was in front of her for a second before her mind processed the thought to hide. With nothing to really hide behind she ran against the wall so that when the door opened it would shield her from being seen. Her heart pounded against her chest from the running she did as she tried her best to keep her heavy breathing silent. The view of the empty room started to be replaced by the door as it swung towards her. She heard footsteps enter the room and saw the figures shadow. Katara prepared herself for a fight that might happen. Drips of sweat kept falling off her chin as she licked her lips. The wait was killing her.

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><p>The sound from up stair was not something you could ignore easily. His hands balled up in a fist as heat rose throughout his body. The thought of his crew mates horsing around when he was in charge of them wasn't something you should challenge. His uncle could see the anger inside of him as he tried to come up with an excuse for why there was yelling and banging noises.<p>

"Maybe they encountered a critter in the ship and are trying to catch it" Uncle Iroh spoke as Zuko exhaled.

"Either way I'm going up there" Zuko responded back. Instead of turning around to take the stairs back up that lead onto the deck he knew of another way. He continued forward leaving his uncle alone in the hallway as he disappeared by taking a right turn into another hallway. An unfamiliar sound stopped Zuko in his tracks. It was a silent banging noise as if someone was running. His gold eyes moved onto the last door in the current hallway he was taking. No doubt it was coming from in there.

He walked over towards the door as he placed his pale hand onto the knob; turning it slightly which caused a quiet creek. The door slowly opened into the room as he stepped inside. Zuko saw nothing out of the ordinary as he continued to walk into the empty room. Then a certain noise rang through his ears. It was a low sound of someone exhaling.

He stopped his walking, standing fully inside the room, his ears listened to the breathing as another familiar sound echoed through him. The door was moving and as on cue he turned sharply around to deflect the attack.

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><p>Katara couldn't wait any more. He was just standing there now. She counted in her head to when she would jump at the person as she slowly tried to move the door away from her. When she had enough room to manoeuvre out without failing she jumped at him with her water whip already charging.<p>

Steam was now in her face as well as her opponent's. He had avoided her water whip with his own fire whip causing steam to replace both there weapons. It didn't effect either of them as she already had created ice daggers that was ready to charge at him and he a fire ball that was already rushing towards her. Katara threw her arms out so the ice daggers came at her opponent as she readied for the impact the fire ball would create.

A sound of someone being thrown against the wall was heard, but it wasn't her. Her eyes locked with gold ones as she recognized the scar on the left side of his face.

"Zuko" she spoke his name with a venomous tone. He was pinned against the metal wall of the ship, but a smirk laid on his face. "What is there to smile about?" Katara asked, annoyed with it. "You can't attack me, but I can attack-," she shut her mouth when she realized she wasn't bending anything. Her eyes darted down to where her water skin was suppose to be, but instead wasn't. She quickly turned around to see it burned and laying on the ground as steam rose from it.

'_He missed me on purpose!' _she shouted in her head when she understood his attention of his attack. Katara spun back around to see him now standing on his two feet as he brushed his sleeves.

"I believe it's the other way around-," he spoke as he created two fire daggers in the palm of his hands. "You can't attack me-," he threw the attacks on her as she tried her best to get away. "But I can attack you" he finished his sentence as he watched her fall to the ground.

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><p><em>HOPE YOU ENJOYED AND IF YOU ARE READERS FROM MY STORY A CHANGE OF HEART OR THE RIGHT CHOICE I AM WRITING IT. ITS JUST IVE BEEN HAVING WRITERS BLOCK.<em>

_PLEASE REVIEW FOR THIS STORY!  
><em>


	2. Chapter 2

'_My arms are killing me, why can't I move them?'_ Katara's mind spoke. She couldn't see anything besides darkness all around, not even herself.

"Aang. Sokka." Her lips softly spoke, but for some reason, she questioned if she actually said that out loud. _'Am I in a dream?' _she tried to walk forward. Katara felt her knees bend only a few inches, but when it came to taking the step forward something pinned her from doing so. Her mind tried to process what was happening right now. What occurred before all this, but she couldn't remember. All she felt right now was a surge of pain coming from the front of her head.

'_Wait. What was that?' _she stopped her thoughts after hearing what she thought were footsteps. Her body stilled. She even held her breath to get a better hearing. All she could hear was her heart pounding in her chest as if it was playing the drums. Her head began to pulse with sweat droplets starting to form on her forehead. A slight stinging pain entered her nerves from where she felt the sweat slid down her forehead. It felt like salt water hitting a cut.

'_I don't hear anything'_ her thoughts started up. An uneasy feeling shook her body until she started to feel her right eye twitch. That was when she figured out she wasn't dreaming. Her eyes shot open from her nightmare experience as they frantically darted back and forth in the dim lit room. After a few deep breaths, her spinning mind finally calmed.

Metal is all she was seeing with a few candle stands in the corners of the room. Her shaken eyes quickly looked down to see why she wasn't able to move her feet. With doing the act, she caught a red blur before seeing the shackles pinning her legs to the metal wall. Her mind didn't even think once of the shackles right now. Instead, it was focused on the red blur she had a quick view of before.

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><p>Zuko watched the unconscious water peasant. Her face looked pained which he guessed was from her arms being held up for a period of time. A small smile rose from his serious look when he saw her failed attempt to move them.<p>

"Aang. Sokka." The smirk on his face died with hearing those names. _'Stupid girl, don't call for your friends when it's your own fault you got caught'_ he had wondered before while carrying her to this metal prison why she came alone to attack him, but he chose to get the answer to that when she woke up. His eyes moved down to the ground when he caught a movement coming from there.

Zuko wanted to laugh at the poor girl's effort to move forward, but instead he decided to quietly pace back and forth in the room, because his feet were beginning to hurt from standing too long. Each time it was time to turn, he would take a glance at Katara before continuing his pacing. Sometimes he got the urge to just wake her up from the impatience he had, but he would always shake the thought away.

He guessed he went around the room five times before he thought it was unusually quiet. Something was now different, but he didn't see the water girl move beside the movements of her limbs earlier. He stood still watching the girl. Trying to guess what changed. Her body was stiffer than before, and it seemed as if she was holding her breath with the way her lips were sealed. His gold orbs watched the sweat drip down her forehead, some going over the medium cut she had received from the earlier fall. He watched her right eye twitch, and with no warning both eyes shoot open as if waking from a horrible nightmare. He watched in amusement of the scared eyes darting around the room and the sound of her heavy breathing running through his ears, before reaching a steady rhythm.

He didn't budge from where he was standing. He was waiting for her to notice him. A couple of times her eyes ran over his figure, but she didn't acknowledge his presence until the last moment after checking her feet.

"Zuko" she spoke his name in the familiar tone she had used last time. It was all coming back to her on what happened and why she was in this situation. "Let me go!" she yelled loudly.

"You are not in the right position to be raising your voice at me," he spoke in his normal tone of annoyance. "Now why are you on my ship?"

"Like you wouldn't know" She tried to arch her body forward, hopefully break the restraints, but all she got from the failing attempt was making her own self tired

"I have a thought, but other than that one thought I don't" Katara's eyebrows knitted together. Hearing his voice was making her boil inside.

"You're lucky you restrained me." She spat at him. The action Zuko chose to take took Katara's breath away. With a blink of an eye, he was a step away from his body being pressed against hers. She swallowed the air she chocked on before staring strongly into his fiery eyes. Zuko had one hand pressed against the metal wall by the side of her face, and the other hand held her locked left wrist that was above her head.

"Was that a threat?" His voice was iced over as a chill ran up her spine. "You don't get the position you're in right now filthy water peasant." She felt something warm starting to rise up on her left wrist before realizing he was burning her.

"Stop it!" she screamed. She tried to knee him, but the shackles wouldn't let her knee get into contact with him. "You bastard, you're hurting me!" A smirk went across his face at her words. Zuko leaned in towards her ear, his cheek lightly brushing hers.

"Now you understand" he whispered before pushing away from her. Katara quickly looked straight into his eyes. She didn't once let herself cry at the pain he caused her, because she would never show mercy to him; not even when she was vulnerable. "Why are you on my ship?" he asked again as if nothing happened just now.

"I want my friends back" her voice didn't have the attitude like before, but it wasn't calm either. Her statement shocked Zuko causing his eyebrow to rise. "Don't act shocked. You know I would come to get them"

"If I had them, I know you would come to get them"

"What do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Katara was annoyed at his smart-ass remark, but she already was shown what he would do if she spoke back. It pissed her off though that he would take her disadvantage to his use. "I don't have your brother or the avatar"

"Ha, like I could believe that" she tried to roll her shoulders backwards to sooth the pain that has been building up, but it hardly did anything besides bring more pain.

"I guess you're going to have to water peasant"

"I don't have to believe anything that comes out of your mouth" she shot back.

"Does someone need another lesson?" Katara shut her mouth. It annoyed her that she had to listen to the banished prince, but she couldn't afford to get injured. "There's a good girl" Zuko spun on his heels, turning his back to her.

"Where are you going?" Katara suddenly raised her voice. Zuko ignored her as he started to walk off towards the metal door.

"As you're in here you can think about learning respect" he opened the door, but before closing it behind him, he added one more thing. "Not think, but need to learn respect"

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><p>Katara hung her head down. She was tired from all the fail attempts of trying to break free. Her clothes were soaked in sweat, and her hair was a damp mess as she tried to catch her breath. <em>'Damn, it's no use'<em> she complained silently as she exhaled a buildup of air inside her lungs. She knew she was going to have to wait for Zuko to return if to have any hopes of getting down, and she dreaded that.

She bought her head to look up to her left wrist, remembering the burn Zuko left. She wanted to see how bad it was, because she hasn't felt any pain after he let go. Her tired eyes looked at her left wrist and to her surprise, there was nothing. She was so certain there would be a third degree burn from the pain she had felt when he was holding it, but nothing lay on her skin.

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><p>I know I started this in the summer, but now the summer is over and I just updated. Hey at least I updated right? =D<p>

Well I hope you REVIEW, because that what pushes me to update. *Punches the air*


	3. Chapter 3

Zuko watched as his opponent flew across the deck of the ship and into the metal wall that prevented anyone from falling into the ocean. His eyes stared into the pained face of the man who was chosen to be his sparring partner, but moved to the ocean when he saw no sign of the man wanting to continue. Everything that happened yesterday came crashing back into his mind as he watched the waves begin to pick up from its once calm motion. A smirk formed on his face. _'Still not giving up'_ he thought with a silent chuckle. He turned his back to the man who was now struggling to stand and faced his uncle who was engaged in conversation with the chef of the ship.

"Uncle!" he spoke with a loud voice for the intention of breaking the conversation between the two men. The chef quickly shot his head up, staring into the fire bender's eyes with fear, before bowing to both Zuko and Iroh.

"That was quite rude my nephew," Iroh spoke with his normal tone of voice as he stood up from his tea table. "I was asking the chef if he can make roast duck tonight instead of fish"

"But we don't have duck on this ship to be able to make that" Zuko spoke with a voice that was uncertain of what Uncle Iroh's intention was. Zuko cocked an eyebrow when he saw his uncle's mouth turn into a big grin. "I don't like this" he mumbled to himself, because he knew what was going to be said from his uncle.

"That's why I asked the chef if it was possible we can dock at the next village coming up to pick some up" Zuko felt the anger rise in his body, but he quickly closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose while inhaling and exhaling a quick breath of air to calm down.

"Uncle," he spoke with a quiet, but irritated voice. "We are not going to stop so we can pick up just one thing and waste time that can be used for capturing the avatar on that one item"

"Oh, but nephew we won't just be getting one thing, because it will gives us the opportunity to be able to get other supplies as well." Zuko opened his mouth to argue back, but a wave crashed violently into the ship causing him to stumble on his feet. "That was odd," Iroh spoke up when he was balanced back on his two feet. "The ocean was calm not that long ago"

"I need to go and deal with something" Zuko spoke through his teeth as he stormed off into the ship. _'That peasant just doesn't give up'_.

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><p>Strands of hair clung to her face, her clothes were drenched in her sweat, and her whole body ached from the restraints. Her eyes looked down to her feet and stared at the metal cuffs around her ankles before looking up to the cuffs around her wrist. <em>'Doesn't even look like I did anything'<em> she sighed at another failed attempt of trying to break free. She was already in a lot of pain from having her arms held up for a long period of time, but now the cuffs were digging into her skin, because she had to keep putting pressure onto herself to try and break free.

"I can't give up" she softly spoke to herself to give her a boost. "I have to get my brother and Aang"

'_I don't have your brother or the avatar'_ his voice rang into her mind, but she shook her head to make it go away. "Like I can believe you!" she yelled out of annoyance of hearing his voice_. 'Can't trust that fire prince' _she silently told herself as she tried again.

Katara eyes darted to the door when she heard it begin to open, but it didn't stop her. She still threw her body forward in hopes that the restraints will give eventually.

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><p>Zuko could hear her muffled voice through the metal as he grew closer to her holding cell. She was yelling for some reason, but the words weren't clear to him. All he knew was that she was causing the waves to pick up, because she was throwing her emotions into them. <em>'Stupid girl' <em>he told himself as he stood in front of her door. He wasted no time in entering her cell, but the sight before him was something of a shock.

"Look at you" he commented with a harsh tone. "You are soaked with your sweat" his eyes darted to her feet and wrist to see if she had any success, but all he saw was that her skin was becoming inflamed with her putting constant pressure against the metal. "You are just causing pain to yourself and-,"

"I don't want to hear you!" Katara snapped. She watched as his eyes widened before turning into anger, but she couldn't care. He was always angry. "I want you to let me go, NOW!" even if she couldn't get out she wasn't going to show any sign of defeat. "What's funny?" she asked when she heard him chuckle.

"Nothing you're doing is funny," he responded with a serious tone, but then it turned into humor. "but I can see you didn't learn to respect me. I guess you can't understand that in your position you are weak."

"I'm in this position, because you are afraid of me?" she titled her head slightly as she made her voice sound innocent, sweet, and gentle before smirking. She could read his emotions like a book, mostly because they are always the same to her, and this was no exception.

"You think you are funny." He stated. "Well get this water peasant, because if I have to come back here to remind you again it won't be me just telling you," he took a step forward with pleasure in seeing her take one back and realizing she has nowhere else to go to get away from him. "You are causing the waves to rock this ship violently and it's not making me happy," he watched as she held her eyes onto his. "If this happens again you know what the consequence will be." Before he turned to leave he took one more step towards her.

Katara turned her head away from his face, because she couldn't move back anymore due to the wall. She was tempted to spit on him or bang her head against his if he didn't move, but he did and she relaxed her body.

"Now who is afraid?" he let the last word out as he slammed the door shut.

"I'm not afraid of someone like YOU!" she yelled, hoping he heard, but also so he didn't get the last word. "You're just an arrogant banished prince" Katara hung her head as she thought of how she could escape, because what she's been trying hasn't shown any sign of working. _'Someone is going to have to unlock the cuffs for me'_ she tried to move her left arm forward to give it one last shot, but a lot of pain shot threw her body. "Damn."

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><p>"There you are Zuko," Uncle Iroh smiled as he rushed over to his side. "I was looking all over for you. Where did you vanish to?"<p>

"No where important uncle," Zuko continued down the hallway towards the one place that would calm him down. "Now what did you want?"

"I was just letting you know that we will hit a small village hopefully by tomorrow morning, at least that's what I was told" Zuko nodded his head in response, but still wasn't very pleased about this.

"I'm going to meditate now" Iroh nodded his head in understanding before turning around to leave his nephew alone. _'I want my friends back' _shot through his mind as he stared at the rising flames on the four candles in front of him. "If I had them I would be heading back home already" he spoke as if answering her voice. _'But then who does?' _he wondered while he took his position to begin his meditation.

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><p><strong>I know it's been so long! Just so much happened. I promise to update sooner though, but because of work and college starting again it won't be that fast.<strong>

**Still I never forget you.**

**Please review.**


	4. Chapter 4

"Damn it!" Katara yelled in a horsed voice. Frustrated tears began to slide down her face as she clenched her mouth tight to hold in the painful cries. Her whole body was beginning to go numb from hanging in the same position and she knew her arms weren't pretty. She didn't want to admit defeat, but she had to be honest with herself, Zuko had her until she could get free.

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><p>'<em>Finally the peasant gives up'<em> Zuko thought when he felt the waves begin to calm down, but he had to hand it to her for holding up this long. He scanned the food in front of him before bringing them up to his uncle who was sipping his favorite beverage. His eyes must have lingered on him for a while because he saw his uncle put his cup down ready to speak to him.

"Are you at least going to bring food to her?" he spoke with a frown on his face. Zuko shot his eyebrow up in shock since he wasn't expecting that to be the words to come out from his mouth.

"How did you know?" He never saw him go down to the cells. At least he seemed to always spot his uncle up here, but then he wasn't always around him.

"The ocean gave it away," Zuko didn't see how that was possible. If he wasn't the one who locked the water bender up he wouldn't even think the oceans sudden current change was due to a bender. "Going from calm to crashing waves when there is not a single cloud in the sky isn't common. Especially with the way it's been on and off." Zuko only grunted before looking down at the food. "I know you wouldn't want her to starve to death?" The fire prince kept his eyes glued to the table, but he had to agree with his uncle. Not feeding the water bender for a day wasn't a big deal for him, but he didn't want to see her die from hunger. With a nod of his head he stood up while grabbing the tea pot, a cup, and a few stuffed buns. He could feel his uncle's approving smile while he walked towards the cells.

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><p>Another disturbing growl escaped from her body as she groaned in agreement. All she could do now was listen and rest. Her strength wasn't with her anymore and her body was gone of all feelings. She thought Zuko captured her to get the avatar, but now she was thinking he wanted her dead.<p>

Her head shot up when she heard footsteps outside her cell, but a silent cry escaped through her lips from the movement. _'What does he want?'_ She thought in annoyance with having to see him. _'Probably wants to get pleasure in seeing me suffer'_ she answered her thought.

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><p>Zuko heard nothing from behind the door for the first time. She always seemed to be doing something anytime he came to see her, but not this time. His jaw clenched tight as he waited in front of the door wondering what he would see when he went through. <em>'It's only been one day since locking her up' <em>he told himself so the possibility of finding her dead wasn't a concern for him. With a shrug of his shoulders he pushed the door open to see her eyes looking right at him.

"Exhausted yourself?" his words sounded like a question, but his tone made it a statement.

"Resting" she responded. She may had admitted he had her for now to herself, but to him she wouldn't. She watched as his eyes scanned her whole body, but she wasn't going to show any sign of discomfort.

"I can see" Katara lips frowned deeper, but she was truly exhausted to continue this act of being strong. "I'm going to unlock you so you can eat," the words rang through her head over and over, but she didn't know how she felt about it. She couldn't even feel her body right now so putting up a fight to escape didn't seem possible to her. "But try anything and you will regret it." Zuko put down the cup and tea pot, but his eyes didn't move from the pot. He knew she could bend the tea and he had no doubt she wouldn't try to since she wasn't dense, but he wasn't going to show his concern about it. He balanced the two stuffed buns on top of each other over the cup so not laying on the dirty floor before walking over to the water tribe girl.

Katara watched as he first unlocked both her feet with a smirk on her part. "Afraid I'll start bending?" she asked with pleasure in her voice.

"Not afraid," he replied while taking notice of the red on her ankles before pushing up to begin on her arms. "But I wouldn't let it pass you to try something." His eyes widened at the sight of her wrist. They looked to be three times the normal size with the skin looking irritated and red as it pushed against the metal cuffs like they were locked too tight.

"Decided to not unlock me?" Katara asked when she didn't feel the pressure of the cuffs lessen. It didn't matter to her either way since she couldn't feel the pain anymore.

"I told you I was going to" she was going to make a remark, but her body crumpled to the ground when the last cuff was unlocked and all the pain that she wasn't feeling came back so sudden that an actual scream escaped from her with such force she swore she saw Zuko cringe. "Calm down I got you!" Zuko yelled over her, but she didn't hear.

'_Shit!'_ Zuko thought while he held her in his arms hoping she would shut up. He had no doubt she was in a lot of pain with the way her legs and arms looked, but he didn't think about what would happen when all her weight went back to her legs when he freed her arms. Luckily he was close by to fall with her so he could protect her from seriously injuring herself.

Katara could only feel pain after pain surge through her body. It felt like burning needles where stabbing every part of her body as a hammer was hitting them in deeper. She tried to take deep breaths to calm herself down, but everything that was happening was too much. Her body was beginning to shake and her arm and legs were starting to pulse.

"Katara you need to relax" she heard him speak her name, but following his order seemed impossible with her mind stuck on the pain. "Take a deep breath in" she heard the ordering continue. Couldn't he see she was trying that? With each exhale her body shook in pain. "I'm going to try to stand you up."

"I can't" her voice was strained. Zuko didn't listen, she felt him begin to shift causing her body to feel the needles more. "Stop!" she didn't expect him to listen though.

"Try to help yourself stand up with me" Zuko looked down at her face when he got to his knees from his sitting position causing Katara to kneel as well. "I'm going to count to three so you can prepare yourself" every word he spoke was serious. She didn't hear concern in his tone, but maybe irritation instead. _'Jerk' _she thought. "One," his grip tightened at the side of her shoulders. "Two," she felt her body being to tense up, but saw him preparing to stand. "Three."

"Ah!" she tried to help with standing, but it seemed he did the most with forcing her. Her legs wanted to give out again, but she felt Zuko tighten his grip to ensure she wouldn't.

"If you collapse again I'm going to leave you on the ground"

"Thanks."

"You need to move your legs so you get feeling into them," Zuko watched as she started to step forward causing him to have to move back. His eyes studied her facial expression with each step seeing her try to hide the pain from him until his back hit the cell door. "I'm letting go." Katara gave a nod so he loosened the grip he had slowly to make certain she was firm on her feet. "I'll have my uncle bring you something for the pain"

"What pain?" she wasn't hiding it in her voice, but for some reason she had to say something. Zuko didn't say anything else as he turned to leave the cell. When the door closed with a click she let herself fall forward, but only so she was leaning against the cool metal. Katara didn't want to sit in fear of not being able to stand, but she had to have something support her.

'_This is pathetic'_ she told herself silently while turning around so she had her back against the cell door. Her eyes spotted the stuff Zuko had carried in with him before all of this, but the tea had spilled and the buns had dirt on them as they laid on the cellar floor. _'I guess they got knocked over when he fell with me' _

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><p>Zuko felt a part of his clothing cling to him due to the tea spilling and him being in its path as it did while he was forced to the ground. None of this would be happening if Katara didn't try so hard to break free. She may have been numb for hanging too long, but they wouldn't have been swollen like they are. Now he had to ask his uncle for help, because he didn't know what to give her, but he was not going to deal with her being in pain.<p>

He looked in the dining hall where he last saw his uncle, but it was empty. Next was the kitchen, but when he asked the cook where he went he shrugged his shoulders with little fear in his eyes. Zuko walked over to the deck, but when that failed he went towards the room where uncle Iroh was staying.

Zuko knocked on the metal door when he finally reached the room which was a few doors down from his, but no response. _'Where is he?'_ he tried again.

"Who is it?" he heard his uncle's voice from the other side.

"Your nephew" He heard the click of the door and saw Iroh move away so he could come in. "I need you to bring medicine to the water tribe girl"

"Is she sick?" he heard the concern in his uncle's voice. He seemed to have concern for everyone, but then that's was one of the things he liked about his uncle, beside him seeming to know what to say in every situation.

"No, but she is in a lot of pain and I don't want to deal with it" He saw his uncle's eyes narrow before relaxing with a small smile.

"Has she eaten?" Zuko shook his head thinking about the mess down in her cell. "Well while I get the medicine you can bring the food. I don't want her to have an empty stomach when taking it, because it can make her sick" Zuko nodded as he walked out of the room towards the kitchen.

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><p>Katara studied the small puddle the tea made as it began to create a little river while it spread across the floor. If it didn't hurt to move her wrist she would bend the tea, but it wasn't worth it right now. <em>'You still need to find Sokka and Aang' <em>then what good would it be to fight if she wasn't going to win? She hated to admit it, but she couldn't continue on until she was at least able to bend without so much pain.

"I guess you win for now" she mumbled in disgust. Her eyes widened when she felt the door she was using for support start pushing forward causing her to stumble and put more pressure on her still painful legs.

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><p>Zuko had the chef make another pot of tea and warmed up a bun for Katara to eat, but he had to admit that he was beginning to get angry with everything. He should be searching for the avatar not taking care of one of his friends. When he did reach where the girl was being held he swore he heard her saying something, but then that was nothing new. What was new was that something seemed to be against the door since he had to put more effort in opening it.<p>

"Why were you blocking the door?" he questioned as he watched Katara get her footing. "Making sure I couldn't come in?"

"That would be a pathetic attempt on my part. I was leaning against it to rest"

"There are other walls to lean on" Zuko handed Katara the cup while looking at her wrist. "How much does it hurt to move?" he watched her knit her eyebrows together as if he spoke another language.

"It doesn't" She wasn't going to admit she was in pain.

"The tough act does get tiring" he began to pour the tea his eyes never leaving her wrist.

"Then it's good for you to know that it's not an act"

"My uncle will be coming to give you medicine, but he wants you to have something inside of you so you don't get sick"

"Here I thought this was on your own accord" she took the bun from him, studying it.

"I didn't do anything to it" Zuko watched as she took a bite before walking to pick up the other pot and cup. Katara kept an eye on him, but quickly looked over to the door when she heard a knock. "Come in." She saw Iroh walk in with a cup in his hand and a smile on his face. She seen him before when Zuko was chasing them around everywhere, but he seemed to be in the background watching, she never took him as a threat.

"Hello Miss Katara" she gave him a smile since she had food in her mouth. Her eyes watched as he looked down to her wrists and then her legs. Her mouth mirrored his frown when he took her hand gently to get a better look. "This doesn't look good" Katara knew it wasn't but hearing it from someone else didn't help. "Here take this medicine it should help with the pain." She took the cup and studied the thin brown liquid inside. It didn't look at all appealing to her and her stomach agreed with a light growl that made her feel nauseas when she got a whiff. "It's easier if you don't smell it and do it fast" he gave her a reassuring smile so she returned one to him.

She flung her head back while gulping the whole cup in hopes to not get the taste staying on her tongue, but when the medicine started to go down it wanted to go right back up. She forced another swallow to keep it down, but she felt sicker doing that. She forced a smile to Iroh as she handed the cup back.

"Hopefully it will kick in soon, but you may start to feel dizzy as a side effect so I would lie down"

"Thank you" she followed his eyes around the room when he didn't say anything else.

"You shouldn't lay in this cold and dirty cell" she heard him speak. "Zuko will find a room for you to stay" with his name bought up Zuko shot a look to his uncle.

"Where do you expect her to stay?" Katara rolled her eyes at him, but she was ignored as Zuko continued with his uncle. "There are others on this ship that already taking up the rooms we have. Plus she isn't on our side if you haven't figured that out?"

"My dear nephew," Iroh began and Zuko hung his head when hearing this knowing he would be the one to give in. "There is plenty of rooms on this ship and I know you will figure it out. Katara may not be on our side, but that gives you no right to treat her like a prisoner" Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose as he shook his head lightly.

"She is a prisoner. She snuck onto the ship" he mumbled, but he was ignored when Iroh continued.

"I know you will do what is right" before Zuko could argue anymore Iroh turned to leave leaving the two opposite benders alone.

"Even with the room the door will always be locked on the outside with me having the key to it," Katara listened a little surprised Zuko was actually doing it. "You will not be by any water and you will not try anything. I am in control."

"Seems like your uncle is" She heard a growl escape from him, but she only laughed.

"Just start walking" Katara bit her lip afraid to actually step forward with no support, but she saw Zuko becoming impatient. As expected it didn't go easily with her first few steps, but she didn't fall so it was something.

"I don't know where I'm going"

"I'm surprised since you seemed to have searched every room when you snuck on" She ignored his remark as she walked forward, but when she hit the stair she became worried. "What's wrong?" She could feel he was close behind when he spoke, but her mind was on what she could do to get up the stairs. Without an answer she grabbed the railing, but with her wrist it wasn't helpful. "Are you in pain?"

"I'm okay" she hoped she sounded convincing, because when she took the first step pain shot up her leg. She clenched her teeth tightly and inhaled hard to hold in the scream that wanted to come out. Zuko was right behind her so she didn't want to show she was struggling with the steps. Instead she kept her mouth closed tight and shouted in her head with each step, but it was beginning to be too much. _'How many steps are there?'_ she cried to herself. She knew the medicine wouldn't take effect yet, but this was torture! She was beginning to sweat from the pain as she continued up, but when she hit the last one she let out a sigh of relief.

"The medicine should kick in soon" She looked up at Zuko not able to get a word out, because she was exhausted from the amount of energy it took to keep the pain in. "If it's hard then you can use me for support" He watched the shock spread across her face while staring at him as if he had two heads.

"I don't need your help," it wasn't meant to be harsh, but she cringed at the way it sounded. "But thank you." Before she could see his expression she continued on. _'That's probably the only time I would say that to him' _

"Walk down this hallway till you hit the eighth door" he saw her nod and they continued walking in silence, but he could catch her grunt every now and then as she pushed herself to be strong.

'_One…ow…two…ow…three…keep going Katara…four…only four more…five…I think I feel the medicine kicking in…six…don't lose your footing…seven…one more…eight' _She didn't care anymore if Zuko knew or not. She was done with pretending as she leaned against the wall, but accidently hitting her right arm against it. She looked over to Zuko who walked past so he was in front of the door taking the key out.

"Is it strange to already have the key for this room?" Katara asked studying the metal.

"No." she understood that he didn't want to continue talking and that wasn't a problem for her. When he got it open he waited for her to walk in first before following.

Her eyes scanned the room that was obviously bigger than her cell, but maybe by four cells put together. It still had the metal walls, floor, and candle stands at each corner of the room so it wasn't dark which she noted had no windows. She saw a bed with red and gold sheets on top and two wooden night stands on both sides of the bed. One held a small single candle and the other was bare or anything.

"This room isn't much different from the cell" she mumbled when she finished looking.

"Good"

"What if I have to use the bathroom?" she added noticing the absent of one.

"Then I or my uncle will bring you to use it" Katara spun on her heel almost banging into him in the process.

"I don't want either of you watching me go!" She knew Zuko was a bad person, but not perverted.

"We wouldn't be watching you," he snapped at her. "But restricted so you don't escape." Katara narrowed her eyes before widening them. "What's wrong?" he watched her stumble back a little, but before he could reach her she got her footing. "I think you need to rest. I will come back in a few hours. Don't try anything."

"Like I could anyways" she spoke when he was gone. She turned to head to the bed, but swayed a little from the turning. "The medicine does make you dizzy" she confirmed out loud as she staggered to the bed.

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><p>Yay another chapter for MISTAKE.<p>

I'm sorry I haven't been on my toes for updating, but I realize that it's hard to continue to keep up with college and everything else.

I haven't forgotten any of my readers though.

I love you guys.

I hope you haven't forgotten me!

Enjoy this Chapter!

Review!


	5. Chapter 5

The flames danced with each breath he took. He watched carefully as they rose when he inhaled and calmed when he exhaled. They knew what mood he was in, because with each inhale they grew to be bigger than normal. Zuko clenched his fist with an irritated sigh causing it to become dark in the meditation room. _'This isn't helping'_ he thought to himself while rising to his feet. He was supposed to be on the avatar's trail, but now he was at a pause, because he had no idea where he was and the water bender was on the same path.

She thought he had him which is why she is a prisoner on his ship. He thought of questioner her more on what happened to her brother and Aang, but when he checked up on the water bender she was out cold. He wanted to wake her up, but didn't want to deal with her when he did.

'_This is getting out of hand'_ he gave out a groan while he left the dark room to see if he could find his uncle, but before he even got two steps in his search he spotted him walking over.

"There you are Zuko!" His uncle smiled ear to ear as he waved his arm through the air. "I was looking to inform you that we have hit a small village to where we can gather supplies" Zuko deepened his frown when hearing the news, but recalled that his uncle wanted to pick up duck.

"Let's make it quick" there was no time for him to waste. He may be at a halt right now, but that means he has to push harder to figure out where the avatar is. He's been gone from home too long in the search for him so wasting more time wasn't acceptable.

"You can't rush the art of looking for the right duck" Zuko gave a grunt to that, but Iroh walked ahead. "I will get the chef and you can fetch Miss Katara"

"Why would I be doing that?" he questioned while trying to keep up with him. "She is fine inside the room. It's locked so no worrying about her trying to escape" he watched as his uncle gave his head a shake of disapproval, but never stopped his walking.

"She needs fresh air once in a while nephew"

"She can hardly walk uncle" it was true, but also an excuse to keep her here. Being outside meant she had a better chance in escaping.

"Your right," Zuko quickly halted before bumping into his uncle who chose to stop suddenly. "Then you need to figure a way to where she can walk around outside. I think she would enjoy seeing the shops."

"She's a prisoner," Zuko responded quickly to his words. "She isn't supposed to be enjoying anything!" His uncle ignored his annoyance by continuing on, leaving him standing alone in the hallway. _'This is getting out of hand!' _he shouted in his mind again while stomping off.

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><p>Katara clenched her eyes tightly to surpass the pain that was shooting through her for the second time. She was trying to sleep it through, but it wasn't working anymore. <em>'Why did the medicine have to wear off already?'<em> she whined silently while rolling over and kicking her feet from under the covers so they were hanging off the bed. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before letting a yawn escape her mouth with a groan.

"What am I going to do?" Her eyes studied the ceiling as if waiting for an answer. All night she dreamt of Zuko taking Aang and Sokka, but when she finally reached her brother and Aang they vanished only leaving her and Zuko alone in a metal room. She woke up before anything happened, but she didn't know what it meant. With an exhale of air she decided that it was time to get up and figure out what she can do. She can't lay around here while her brother and Aang are being held captive.

'_Alright on the count of three you are going to stand up'_ she told herself, because her body didn't want to move. _'One…yawn…two…I wish I still had the medicine in me...three…'_

"AH!" her legs threatened to give out when she put her weight onto them, but with the bed next to her she was able to use it for support before actually hitting the floor. "Well this is perfect" she told herself while she slowly worked with her legs getting use to the sudden pressure_. 'Though the pain isn't as bad as yesterday'_ she admitted when she was standing up on her own.

Her eyes looked over the room again to see if she missed anything, but it was the same as before. Nothing that can be used to escape, not even a window. In the end she decided to head to the door, in hope, that it was unlocked.

It wasn't horrible getting to the door, but she was beginning to feel her legs throb with little discomfort when stopped in front of it. _'I doubt it's unlocked'_ it wasn't a positive thought, but Zuko wasn't the kind to forget to do something like locking a door. When she put her hand on the door knob it began to turn. The only problem is that she wasn't the one turning the knob.

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><p>Zuko was standing in front of the metal door that held Katara. He was staring at it for a minute or two trying to think of a way to ensure that she would stay here and not go with him and his uncle. The only reason why he was going through with it was because he knew his uncle wouldn't be pleased with him and he couldn't stand that. Uncle Iroh was one family member who cared about him, besides his mother. He was like a second father to him until he regained his honor.<p>

His head shot up when he heard a scream coming from the other side, but still he didn't rush in to see if everything was okay. _'She's up'_ he told himself as he put his hands on the door knob. _'Still sounds like she is in pain' _which he hoped meant that she wouldn't want to tag along.

When he tried to open the door he felt a little resistance on the other end. His eyes narrowed as he put a little more force into opening the door and got a crashing sound with a shriek. When he was fully inside the room he saw Katara on the floor with her eyes looking at him.

"Leaning on the door again?" he asked as he offered a hand to help her up. She brushed it aside and helped herself up though he saw the pain in her eyes. He looked down at her wrist to see that it was still swollen and red then down to her ankles. "I guess you're still in pain?"

"I don't see why that is any of your concern" she brushed herself off as she regained her composure. "Why are you here?"

"Making sure you didn't escape" she heard the sarcasm in his tone. He knew she would still be here so there had to be another reason. He didn't have food this time so she waited for him to speak. "My uncle wants to know if you wanted to join us as we picked up supplies?" he wasn't pleased in admitting this, but it was what his uncle wanted.

Katara kept her eyes on his face to see if he was being truthful, but she couldn't read him. Was he not afraid of her trying to escape? There had to be a catch. It wasn't like she could bend right now. To confirm this she moved her wrist to be rewarded with more pain _'Damn'_.

"It's better than being stuck here" Zuko gave a nod as he turned around to leave. "Wait! When are we going?"

"Just follow me" he was getting annoyed. He was hoping she wouldn't want to, but he also knew she probably took this as a chance in getting away from him. He just needs to keep an eye on her. He would usually restrain her hands, but her wrist weren't in the right condition to have something rubbing against them.

"Like I would know that" she glared at him like he did her_. 'I'll figure how to get away when we are walking around'_ she thought while following him. As they were walking towards the deck she could catch him checking to see if she was still behind every once in a while and it was beginning to annoy her. What can she do right now? He would obviously catch her even before she took a step to get away.

When they reached the deck Katara saw uncle Iroh and a man she never met before waiting for them. Like usual Iroh had a smile on his face when seeing her, but the other man didn't show any emotions. He looked tired as if he never slept before. His figure was on the skinny side compared to Zuko and she couldn't tell if he had hair or not due to him wearing a bandana on his head.

"I'm glad to see you joining us today" Iroh spoke to Katara, ignoring Zuko's displeasure.

"Thank you for inviting me" she gave him a polite smile.

"If you see anything you like Miss Katara you can let me or Zuko know and we will get it for you"

"Thank you, but I'm good" what she did want was being stopped by Zuko. She moved her eyes over to him, but he wasn't paying attention. She saw that Iroh was still staring at her his smile gone from his face.

"Are you sure you can walk?" he asked as he looked down to her feet.

"Yes, the medicine helped" she responded.

"Let's just hurry up" Zuko gave a gesture for Katara to move forward so she did while rolling her eyes. She looked over to the ocean thinking about how easy it would be to get away, but she didn't have the strength right now. Her eyes widened when she felt herself being pulled back with a strong grip on her upper arm as her back hit a hard chest. "You'll be stopped even before you have a chance" she heard the harsh whisper as his warm breath hit her ear.

She had to admit that it bought a chill up her spine before she pulled her arm free from his grasp. He was right though. She may get the ocean moving, but keeping it going wasn't going to turn out good. The consequences wouldn't be any better.

Instead of giving a response she followed Iroh and the man as Zuko stayed close behind her. All she can do was wait. Besides how was she certain that he didn't have her brother or Aang? She didn't want to take the chance of escaping and realizing he had them the whole time. It was pissing her off though. She wanted to know if they were okay.

To calm her mind she distracted herself with all the people walking around the small village. She couldn't tell who was a bender or not, but they seemed to be earth nation mixed with fire nation. _'Fire nation'_ she hissed in her mind. They probably took over this village. She seen it happen more than once when on her travel with Aang. She looked over to the different shops that sold a selection of things from weapons, food, accessories, and other items.

Zuko watched Katara carefully making sure she wasn't going to bend. He knew she was up to something so he had to make sure he was a step ahead of her. He moved his eyes over to his uncle who stopped at a stand that was selling a bunch of meats.

"Zuko, doesn't this look delicious?" his uncle asked as he held up a duck. Zuko gave a nod not really caring. He wanted to head back to the ship so they can be on their way and Katara back in her room. "Miss Katara since my nephew doesn't really care how about you?"

"Yeah it looks great!" Zuko gave a little chuckle at her trying to sound enthusiastic with his uncle, but she really didn't care. He was watching her eyes drifting everywhere, but at the duck.

"Then we'll take it!" Iroh handed the duck back to the merchant as he got out the money to pay for it.

"Let's go back" Zuko turned around forcing Katara to turn as well, but his uncle stopped him before they could start walking.

"We've been on the ship for days. Why no enjoy the shops?" His uncle handed the duck to the chef as his eyes scanned the other shops. Zuko just wanted to lose it. Whoever does have the avatar is getting further away from them and he still doesn't even know who does.

"Because we are wasting time uncle," Zuko turned around to see that uncle Iroh was now looking at different instruments. "Don't you see that someone else has the avatar?" He tried to let out a breath of air to calm him down, but it wasn't working.

Katara watched Zuko begin to get infuriated, but what he said really hit her. Did he really not have her brother or Aang? He wouldn't say that if he did have them. She continued to walk ahead her mind preoccupied, but stopped when she was feeling the pain hit her. _'All this walking must have finally taken its toll'_ she closed her eyes till the pain passed, but she knew she wouldn't last long. She didn't even know why she said yes. She knew she couldn't get away yet.

"Alright let's go back?" her head shot to Iroh who gave a concern look her way. Did he see her hurting? "Miss Katara I will give you medicine when we get back to the ship" Katara nodded her head as they all headed back. She shifted her gaze to Zuko who was concentrating on the ground.

"Zuko do you really not have my brother or Aang?" she whispered. She had to know the truth, but then how would she know if he was telling the truth?

"I told you before I don't" his tone was flat as she struggled to keep up with everyone. Zuko looked over to her. "If I did have the avatar I would already be heading home. Not hanging around here" Her eyes widened at that. It was true. Why would he be stopping here if he had them? He would be going right back to the fire lord to hand over Aang. Then if he didn't have them who did?

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><p>Another Chapter!<p>

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	6. Chapter 6

Katara's whole body was shaking when they reached the ship. Her body was not in pain, but with her legs pulsing from all the walking her nerves were shooting the feeling everywhere. Inside her mind was cursing everything, the outside she kept her best neutral expression to hide anything and everything from the banished prince.

He seemed to have his mind on other things anyways. Anytime the water bender took a glance his eyes would be looking forward, but his attention was elsewhere. _'Probably on the Avatar' _she thought causing herself to think about him and her brother. _'Were they still captured? If they were then by who?'_ Her brain was beginning to race with different possibilities of what may have happened.

"Are you listening?" The voice entered her thoughts. "Or are you thinking of escaping again?" Her eyes focused back to her surroundings. She saw a big ship in front of her, a clear sky above her, voices were heard around her, and an annoyed fire bender beside her.

"I never stop thinking of an escape" she responded before actually focusing on the prince. She watched as his harden gold eyes softened up, but his frown stayed.

"And how has that been working out?" she thought about it for a few. Remembering each time being a fail for the reason of having obstacles in the way then him truly stopping her. Being locked up with no other way out was what truly has been preventing her to continue on, plus her injuries seizing her bending at the moment.

Recalling her injuries bought everything back as she stared at the ship. This was why she stopped her walking. Staring at the ship's platform that would get you aboard looked tiring at the moment. Going up seemed to be a lot of effort for her poor swollen ankles then walking straight as they were doing before.

"Right now it is not going the way I want," her eyes never left the platform as she watched uncle Iroh walking up. "That does not mean you should let your guard down around me." Her view was blocked by a figure. When she looked up she saw Zuko looking down into her eyes. She imagined him being furious at her words, instead he was expressionless.

"Is that a threat?"

"Do you take is as one?" she watched as Zuko opened his mouth then close it when Iroh began speaking from the ship's deck.

"Zuko, why don't you help Miss Katara get on the ship?" Her eyes widen at the request, not expecting Iroh to say that. Then he seemed to be the only one looking out for her.

"Its fine," she quickly spoke up when she saw Zuko's eyes glance down to her ankles. "I am capable of walking on my own, thank you Iroh" she was starting to move around the fire bender, holding her mouth shut to keep the groans in, but an arm on her shoulder stopped her.

Automatically her body stiffened at the contact, preparing for a fight. When she turned her head to see what Zuko's attentions were the sight before her was unexpected. Zuko was on one knee with his back turned towards her as a silent gesture for her to hop on. Katara had to hold back a sarcastic laugh. She could not see his face due to his hair curtaining it, but she imagined him being embarrassed.

"I do not think so" she spoke in a flat tone.

"If you think I want to do this then you are off" she heard his unpleasant voice.

"Then let's both agree not to continue with this" Katara plan was to continue moving on her own, but Zuko was not done speaking.

"Let's both agree that my uncle will be disappointed if he saw I let you continue on your own" He was right. Uncle Iroh made sure she was comfortable here, even when it was against Zuko's wishes. The one thing Katara knew they were both able to agree on was neither wanted to hurt Iroh.

"I'm only doing this to pleas Iroh" also here body would appreciate the break, but she would die before admitting that.

"At least we agree on something" she heard him softly speak, not knowing if she was meant to hear. It was an awkward process trying to get on his back. Having to wrap her arms around his neck and then thighs so she would not slip. She felt him move his arms so he was also holding her up for extra support. That made her want to jump off him from the embarrassment, but in a way stay from the relief her body was starting to feel.

When he began to straighten up Katara unintentionally pressed closer from fear of falling causing her breast to press into his back. She did not let a second go by when she realized her breast squished against him that she quickly leaned back.

"Are you trying to make me lose my balance?" There was his annoyed tone. She did not care though. He was able to regain it fast and continue forward without her having to go back to the unwanted position. "Also, I never let my guard down when around you."

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><p>Zuko did not want to do it, but he knew uncle Iroh did. His uncle did not have to say a lot for Zuko to understand what he wanted. Instead of starting a fight that he would not win he gave in.<p>

"I am capable of walking on my own" He watched the water bender start to leave, watching her hide the pain. _'She thinks she is good at concealing it' _he thought. When his hand made contact to her shoulder he felt her tense with unknowing what would happen. Then he was as well with what she may pull. Letting his arm fall he quickly turned his back to her so he could kneel down as if ready to propose. "I do not think so" he picked up on her unpleased tone. Did she believe he was enjoying this? This had to be the most embarrassing thing he has ever done. He was basically offering his service to his prisoner.

"If you think I want to do this then you are off"

"Then let's both agree to not continue with this" Zuko would love to stand right now and walk away. He could imagine what his crewmates were thinking. Only imagine his uncle pleased with what he was doing. _'Damn it uncle Iroh'_

"Let's both agree that my uncle will be disappointed if he saw I let you continue on your own" uncle Iroh was the only family to stick with him through everything he went through and would continue so as he continued his journey to capture the Avatar and regain his honor.

"I'm only doing this to please Iroh" hearing her say that bought a tug on his heart of what he took as being happy that she agreed about Iroh.

"At least we agree on something" he whispered to himself.

Zuko kept himself balanced when he felt Katara start to wrap her arms lightly around his neck. _'She could easily choke me if she wanted' _he thought with little humor. He was thrown off when he felt her thighs wrap around him, but ignored the feeling. When he felt she was ready he began to stand up. Her body was suddenly pressed hard to his back, but when he began to walk he started to stumble back.

"Are you trying to make me lose my balance?" He was easily annoyed at having to gain his footing. The water bender has been a pain ever since she was caught on his ship. "Also, I never let my guard down around you"

Silence was between the both of them while he carried the water bender onto the deck of the ship. Zuko wanted to drop her off in her room and get away from her. _'As if that is possible on the ship' _he thought in disappointment.

"As he brings you to your room I will get the medicine to help with your pain" Zuko did not hear her response, but assumed she must have gave some gesture for uncle Iroh continued forward. Instead of wasting any more time Zuko proceeded towards where Katara was staying, but with each step he started to feel her slipping.

"Katara you need to tighten your grip" He waited for her to do so without actually stopping his pace. "Katara?" with her loosening from him it was becoming harder to walk properly. With the roll of his eyes Zuko did a quick jump to adjust her properly causing her to have her full body against his back.

"Ah" the soft moan could not be mistaken for anything else but a cry of pain. It was quiet, almost inaudible, but with her head resting on his shoulder he was able to pick the sound up.

"Are you falling asleep?"

"No" her voice was low though she held her tone strong.

"You know being tough all the time can get to be too much?" Zuko did not know why he was saying this. Katara had been doing the tough act since she got here. It was annoying at times he admitted, but it was expected from her.

"Like I said before-,"

"It's not an act?" he finished for her with a sigh.

"Mhm" He did not know if it was attentional on her part and he doubt it was, but she nuzzled her head a little on his shoulder before letting her own sigh out.

"We are here so I'm going to have to put you down to open the door"

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><p>"As he brings you to your room I will get the medicine to help with the pain" Katara heard every word uncle Iroh spoke to her, but she felt her body starting to numb causing a response on her part to be too much of a hassle. A simple head nod was all she could do for Iroh.<p>

Trying to hold onto Zuko was also an effort on her part. With each step she felt herself loosening from him.

"Katara you need to tighten your grip" she heard the request from the fire bender and was not purposely ignoring him, but at the time she could not process how to adjust herself. "Katara?"

The water bender felt the fire prince balance starting to waiver with each step. She did not know what to do at the moment. _'Just put me down' _she thought in her head, hoping he would somehow hear.

"Ah" Katara was not prepare to be jolted suddenly and slammed forward, but all the numbness throughout her body was replaced with a painful tingling. Her head rested on Zuko's shoulder praying the increasing discomfort would go away.

"Are you falling asleep?" How could he assume she would fall asleep when she was near him?

"No" Katara made sure to hold her voice strong even when she just wanted quiet.

"You know being tough all the time can get to be too much?" He really thought it was an act? She could laugh right now in his face.

"Like I said before-,"

"It's not an act?" he cut her off. _'At least he got it.'_

"Mhm" Katara did not know for sure if it was her or the fact that she was close to the fire bender that her body was starting to warm up. Wanting everything to now be silent she imagined herself in bed with her head nuzzling into a cool pillow.

"Well we are here so I'm going to have to put you down to open the door" Zuko waited a few for a response from Katara to know if she was ready to stand, but nothing came from her. _'Irritating peasant' _slowly crouching down so not to have to deal with her screaming at him he waited to feel her move away. The pressure of her being on him was not going away like his patience's. "Everything has to be difficult with you" while still couching he carefully lowered Katara to the metal floor making sure her back was against the wall, as if in a sitting position. "This cannot be good" having not heard anything from her while doing all that he knew something had to be up.

His assumption was clarified when he was staring at a sleeping Katara. "You could not wait till we got back" tone flat and his face erased from all humor he forced the thought of leaving her where she was away as he prepared himself to pick her up. It was not like she was a bother to carry, but the dislike towards her made it seem a hassle.

Zuko opened the door to her holding room to get it out of the way before showing the water bender attention. All thoughts left the prince when he spotted droplets forming on her forehead. _'It is not hot'_ he bought the back of his hand to her forehead.

"Of course" with no hesitation on his part he scooped the girl in his arms rushing her towards the bed. _'She could not just say anything'_ straightening from laying her on the bed Zuko studied her face. She had her eyes closed somewhat tight that bought the assumption she was in pain, beads of sweat were forming more which was why he placed her on top of the covers to not over heat her, and her skin tone looked to be pale.

He did not want to leave the bender, but Zuko had to inform his uncle of what was going on. He had no clue of what else to do. _'I just wanted the avatar'_ he groaned silently while heading to the door.

"Oh, thank you Zuko," His uncle spoke with a smile. "I was about to kick the door as my hands are full" a laugh followed as Iroh walked past a startled Zuko. "How is Miss Katara doing?" Zuko shook his head quickly while following behind.

"She seems to have a fever, but I'm not certain in all this" obviously something was going on which was why he was heading to grab his uncle.

"Her wounds must be causing her to have the fever. She is pushing herself instead of resting"

"You are the one who suggested her to come with us" Zuko studied the items his uncle bought. He recognized the brown liquid as the pain medication, but the other more green liquid he could not recall.

"I know I did," the prince's attention went back to his uncle. "I wanted her to get out of the ship for air, but I was not really thinking of her injuries" hearing his uncle's hurt voice made Zuko take charge.

"It's not you," he began as he picked up the cup with the thin green liquid. "I played a part in it too" it was supposed to be thought out so he was only to hear.

"I believe you are on a path of discovery" Zuko put down the cup with more force than intended causing some of the liquid to spill out. His uncle's words hit him hard in a bad way. He had one path that had been taking longer than needed.

"My path is to regain my honor," he had a calm voice, but he could only keep it low. His arms by his side he felt his fingers digging into the flesh of his palms, "I am to go and be the son my father wants" his eyes never left the nightstand holding the two cups. He was afraid to look away. Afraid of his anger to truly show. _'How could my father do this to his so called son?'_ his mind raged. _'Going against a child. Your own child'_

"Hand me the cup with the green liquid" the sudden change bought Zuko out of his thoughts. Everything disappearing as he glanced back to the two cups.

"What is this?" he questioned with mild disgust in his voice. The smell coming from the glass bought him to hold his breath while he passed it along.

"It is medicine for her fever with cabbage mixed into it, thus the green coloring" _'And smell' _Zuko silently added. "I had to put some nutrition inside so when she takes the pain medicine it wouldn't make her as nausea" Zuko understood his uncle's way of thinking.

"How is she going to take it when she is passed out?"

"I was hoping we would be able to wake her" though unknown to Iroh due to him facing the water bender Zuko gave a shake of his head.

"She was out before I got her to the room," he began explaining. "She did not even stir once, even as I was laying her down" the explanation alone had to be understandable that for the water bender not to put up a fight, physically or verbally, was not common.

"Sleep alone can help her fever reduce, but when she does wake I want her to take both, plus taking it easy" Zuko had no intention in letting her do as pleased on his ship, she was to stay in this room.

"Fine, then we will let her be" Zuko had other important things to focus on, like who had the Avatar. He watched his uncle place the green liquid filled cup back down on the nightstand before facing him.

"Make sure that both get mixed before she takes them"

"Alright" before Zuko turned to follow his uncle his eyes stopped to focus on Katara's face. A strand of hair was stuck out of place on her face. Without any thought Zuko gently brushed the strand back. When he was pulling his hand back his mind registered what he did. _'Damn water peasant'_ was all he could come up with without having to clarify to himself what he did.

While heading out of her room he bought his thoughts away from the water bender and back onto the Avatar. He knew only one person that has been going after him as much as he has. Stepping in many times and ruining his close shot.

"Admiral Zhao" the name bought heat to build up in his body. The fight to hold back from releasing the flames was tough, but he knew he had to take charge of confirming his suspicion.

If it was true then Admiral Zhao had to be close to his father. _'Damn it'_ Zuko's mind blew as he charged forward to the ship's driver. _'I'm so stupid!'_ he yelled at himself as he flew down the hall to a set of stairs.

His ship was heading the opposite direction from his father. As he was going further Zhao was getting closer.

"Turn the ship around!" his speech was quick while the force of him opening the door made is hard to hear. "Turn it around!" he repeated when he only got stares.

"Zuko where would we be heading?" the ship's driver asked with concern on his face.

"We are heading back to see my father"

* * *

><p>Hey guys! I know it has been forever but Damn life just gets you at times, but I have not forgotten. I have been working on this during class and in between other stuff. I love you guys!<p>

Please review.

I may go back to this chapter because I did this over my phone since my labtop is being stubborn...so once I post it I have to re read it to see how it turned out from doing it on my little galaxy phone lol

Thank you for understanding


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